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Mobile Roadie: iPhone App Creator for Bands on a Budget

This post is part of Mashable’s Spark of Genius series, which highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.

Quick Pitch: Mobile Roadie is a quick and inexpensive way for any band, artist, or musician to build their own iPhone App.

Genius Idea: If you're a band with an indie following that's not quite at mainstream size, and you want your own iPhone app to promote your music, you're pretty much out of luck unless you have a large wad of cash to throw at app development. Hiring a professional developer to build something that not only includes your music, but also allows fans to interact with you, is a pretty pricey endeavor.

You could turn to Kyte to do the heavy lifting for you, but that isn't going to be cheap. The appeal of Mobile Roadie is that it offers an affordable, full-featured, music-driven application on a pay-as-you-go plan for bootstrapped bands and musicians.

At $399 for initial setup and $29 per month, Mobile Roady's pricing is pretty straightforward, and gives bands a lot of bang for their buck. Each custom application includes streaming music that fans can purchase, a fan wall for user conversations and photos, and band-related news.

Bands can also make a myriad of other information available to fans. Photos, videos, and social network profiles are all easily accessible from the "More" tab. Plus, band performance information can link to any ticketing site, lyrics can be integrated, stats on downloads and listens are available, and bands can own the overall look and branding of the app.

We're impressed with Mobile Roadie's ability to create instant iPhone apps for bands on a budget, and we'd really like to see some of our favorite indie artists that don't already have an app start using the service.

Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

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